Trolley-pole retriever



B. F. JOHNSON.

TROLLEY POLE RETRIEVER.

APPLICATION FILED APR.231 1921.

Patented July 26, 1921.

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vnrnmivr'In JoHN'sor'LvoF BALTIMORE, MARLAND;

. 'rRonLEY-roiin BETRIEVER,

To all whom t may concern.' f

Be it known that I, BENJAMIN F'. JOHN- son, a citizen of the United States, residing at Baltimore, Maryland, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Trolley- Pole Retrievers, of which the following is a speciiication..

This invention relates to improvements in trolley retrievers, and more particularly to thaJ type of mechanism which is carried by the trolley pole.

An object of the invention isto provide asuitable trolley retriever which will be eticient in operation and inexpensive Vto manufacture.

Another object is to provide a retrieving mechanism for a trolley, which will have the retrieving spring mechanism proper on the trolley pole and the clutch or tripoperating mechanism on the back end of the car.v

A further object is to provide a trolley retrieving mechanism and clutch with 'connecting cable, and a separate cable for resetting the retrieving device.

Other objects willappear as the description proceeds.

ln vthe accompanying drawings "which constitute a part of my application,

ligure 1 is aside' elevation of a portion ot a street car with the retrieving mecha-I nism and clutch in operative position;

Fig. 2 is a vertical longitudinal section of the retrieving mechanism;

Fig. 3 is a front elevation of the clutch f mechanism;

lis a vertical section of Fig.y 3; Fig, 5 is a detail view of the retriever spring tensioning' adjusting means, and

Fig. 6 is a section taken on line 6-6 ot Fig. a. v

Like characters ofV reference are Vused throughout the following specification yto designatecorresponding parts.

rlhe barrel 1 of t ie retriever is detachably connected to the trolley pole 2, by means of the clips or clamps 3. At the lower or pivoted end ot the retriever barrel 1, and termed in thev same, are the transverse slots -1 and longitudinally extending slot 5, which interconnects the -said slots L Adjustable in the lower end of the barrel V1, is the block or member 6, which is provided with the handle or lug 7, the same extending through one of the slots 4l. Connected to the member 6 is a coil spring 8, which may be extended the full length of the barrel 1, or

Specification of Letters Patent. Patented July 26, 1921'.

than the'barrel 1.

The opposite or tree end2 of the barrel 1 is open at its outer end, and has slidably mounted therein the blocks or members 9 and 10, 'which areinterconnected by means of the rod 11. The opposite end of the spring 8 is connected to the block 9, and acts to draw the said block within the barrel 1.

Slidable with the barrel l, and surrounding the rod 11, is the bushing 12, which is provided with the handle portion 13, which extends through the longitudinally extending vslot 14: in the barrel 1. A pivoted pawl or latch 15 is carried by the rod 11, and is piv'oted through the same, being mounted on the pin 16. Thelonger end of the latch 15 extends up through the bushing 12, while the opposite end extends through the slot 17 in the blo'clr 10, and is adapted to engage and latch over the end of the barrel 1 due to gravity and drawing down on the lower end of said latch. A small coil spring 18 is positioned between the bushing 12 and the block or member 10, and acts as a tensioning medium for holding the latch in place. On the outer end of the member 10 is an eye-bolt 19, to which is connected the resetting rope or cable 20. lThe trolley rope or cable 21 is attached to the handle portion 13 of the bushing 12, said cable being the one which trips the mechanism and causes the trolley pole to-be retrieved.

Attached to the back end of the street car is the guide strip 22, the same being provided with the rack 23 on one of its edges, andthe other edge being bent at an angle as at 24. L

Slidably mounted on the guide strip 22, are the clutch membersl 25 and 26, the same being provided with the outwardly extending wings or arm portions 27 Alined openings 28 extend through the wings 27, and the free end of the retrieving or trolley cable 21 is passed through the opening V28 in the uppermost wing 27. A headed rod 29 passes through the openings in the remaining wings', and acts as a connecting means for the two clutch members 25 and 26. A small coil spring 30 surrounds the rod 29, and is positioned between the two lower wings 27 of the lower clutch member 26, and is held in retracted position by means of the adjustable locking collar 31. In this way, the two sections of the clutch are held in opwhen contracted will be considerably shorter erative position. A pivoted pawl 82 is carried by the clutch member 26, and passes through the retaining clip 33 on the clutch member 25.

The operation of the retrieving and clutch mechanism is as followsz Presuming that the trolley pole is in operative position, and the car is running, the clutch members will slide back and forth on the strip 22, without clutching, but as soon as the trolley pole jumps oil the wire, then the sudden pull on the cable 21 causes the two clutch members to separate so that the pawl 32 will engage the rack 23. The resulting pull on the opposite end of the cable 21, will unseat the latch 15, and permit the blocks 9 and 10 to be drawn into the barrel 1, which will draw the trolley pole down toward the roof of the car. To reset the mechanism, the cable 2O is pulled, whereupon the latch will automatically-reset itself, and the trolley pole may be placed with the pulley on the trolley wire, so that the mechanism is again in readiness for operation.

The tension of the spring 18 is adjusted by means of the locking nut 31, so that the slack in the cable 21, will be entirely taken up, by the sliding back and forth of the clutch members on the guide strip. The pulleys 34 are for the cables 20 and 21 to operate on.

While I have described one specific form of operating mechanism, I do not limit myself to the specific details of construction, as many minor changes can be made without departure from the spirit of the invention.

taching said barrel to the trolley pole, a

retrieving spring within said barrel, adjustable tensioning means connecting said spring with said barrel, and means for actuating said retrieving spring.

3. A trolley pole retriever comprising an 4. A trolley pole retriever comprising a barrel member, means for attaching said barrel to the trolley pole, a retrieving spring adjustably mounted in said barrel, slidable means in the free end of said barrel, a pivoted latch carried by said slidable means, resilientv means for holding said latch in locked position, and means for actuating said retrieving spring for retrieving said trolley ole.

`5. A trolley pole retriever comprising a barrel member, a retrieving spring adjustably mounted in said barrel, means for holding said spring in extended position, a toothed guide, interconnected clutch members carried by said guide, means carried by said clutch members for locking said members in ixed position, and means for resetting said spring after it has been actuated.

6. A trolley pole retriever comprising a barrel, a retrieving spring within said barrel, a toothed guide, interconnected clutch members slidable on said guide, tensioning means between said clutch members, and means for locking said members in iixed position.

7. A trolley pole retriever comprising a trolley pole, a detachable barrel on said pole, a retrieving spring within said barrel, latch mechanism for holding said spring in eX- tended position, a toothed guide, resiliently connected clutch members on said guide, means carried by said members for locking the same in fixed position, and means connecting said members with sai-d retrieving mechanism for actuating the same.

8. A trolley pole retriever comprising a barrel member, an adjustable spring within y saidbarrel, latch mechanism for holding said spring in extended position, resiliently connected clutch members, means connecting said members with said latch mechanism, and resetting means for resetting said spring aterthe trolley pole has been retrieved. A

In testimony whereof I aiiix my signature.

BENJAMIN F. JOHNSON. 

